Supreme Court Justice nominee Neil Gorsuch, accompanied by former New Hampshire Sen. Kelly Ayotte, left, meets with Sen. Dianne Feinstein D-Calif., ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2017. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
Supreme Court Justice nominee Neil Gorsuch, accompanied by former New Hampshire Sen. Kelly Ayotte, left, meets with Sen. Dianne Feinstein D-Calif., ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2017. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana) Credit: Jose Luis Magana

Concord — New Hampshire Republican Kelly Ayotte didn’t vote for President Donald Trump and won’t get to vote for his Supreme Court nominee after losing her U.S. Senate seat in November. But Ayotte will help Neil Gorsuch navigate the confirmation process.

Ayotte has been tapped by the Trump administration to introduce the federal appeals court judge from Denver to senators and escort him to meetings and the confirmation hearing.

Trump nominated Gorsuch on Tuesday to replace Antonin Scalia, who died last year. The vacancy has gone unfilled since the GOP Senate leadership refused to hold hearings on the Obama nominee.

The role for Ayotte is a prominent one for someone with a decidedly rocky relationship with the new president.

For months last year, Ayotte supported Trump without endorsing him. She called him a role model for children during one debate but took it back the next day. And when old recordings of Trump bragging about forcing himself on women surfaced in October, she rescinded her support altogether and said she’d write in Vice President Mike Pence for president instead.

In late November, Trump told The New York Times “No, thank you,” when asked about Ayotte working in his administration. That apparently has changed.

Ayotte began her new duties on Wednesday, accompanying Gorsuch and Pence to a meeting with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.